Cantonese Sweet and Sour Pork

I’m always on the hunt for great Chinese food recipes.  Sure, sometimes I’m after more “authentic” dishes, but sometimes I just want some good old North American/Chinese food.  We’re talking Chinese food like your favourite “round the way” spot.  Battered, fried and saucy.  I’m not afraid to admit that.

One of my guilty pleasures when it comes to Chinese food is sweet and sour… pretty much anything!  But especially pork or chicken.  I like it battered and fried crispy and laden with a somewhat artificial sauce.  What can I say?  I grew up on it.  When I saw this recipe in Helen Chen’s Chinese Home Cooking it totally had me at hello.

The ingredients are simple enough and I had them all on hand except for the canned pineapple.  The recipe itself is easy to execute which I like.  It’s easy enough to cook on a weeknight which is always a bonus.  If you wanted to really plan ahead you could probably fry the pork the night before and crisp it in the oven or in some oil.  The one modification that I make here is that I add onions.  The sauce isn’t too sickeningly sweet which is nice AND it’s not that somewhat frightening (but familiar) neon red colour that we’re accustomed to.

Also note that I don’t follow the directions exactly.  It says that the pork should be fried twice.  That just seems like a lot of work to me so I cook it once.  The last time I made this I fried the pork twice and it didn’t make much of a difference to me

If you wanted to be really healthy (although I would question your intent if you’re making a dish of deep fried meat tossed in sugar sauce…) you could add some more vegetables to the mix.  Broccoli would probably work well here.  Also note that I opted for white rice.  Sure, I could have done brown but something about this recipes screams white rice to me!

Enjoy!

Cantonese Sweet and Sour Pork

1/2 cup carrots, peeled and sliced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded, cored, and cut into 1-inch cubes (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup canned pineapple chunks, well drained
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch plus 3 1/2 tablespoons dissolved in 1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon beaten egg plus enough water to make 1/2 cup
1 teaspoon canola, corn, or peanut oil
About 1/2 pound lean boneless pork chops, cut into 1-inch or smaller cubes (about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon dry sherry
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash black pepper

Sauce
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup cider vinegar

Oil for deep-frying  (pork is deep-fried twice)

Directions
In a small saucepan of boiling water, parboil the carrots for 1 minute. Add the green pepper to the same water. As soon as it comes back to a boil, drain the vegetables and rinse in cold water to stop cooking. Add the pineapple to the vegetables and set aside.
Combine the flour, 1/4 cup cornstarch, baking powder, egg mixture, and oil in a mixing bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until the mixture is a smooth paste. Set aside.
In another bowl, stir the pork, sherry, salt, and pepper together. Set aside.
In a wok or stir-fry pan, heat 2 inches o foil to a temperature of 375 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Dip the marinated cubes of pork into the batter to coat completely. Carefully drop the pork into the hot oil, 1 piece at a time. Deep-fry until light golden brown. Remove with a wire skimmer, spread out on paper towels, and let cool. Reserve the oil in the pan. (You may deep-fry the pork to this point in advance and keep it in the refrigerator for a few days or in the freezer. The oil may be strained and kept for a day or two; otherwise use fresh oil for the second frying.)
Make the sweet and sour sauce only when ready to proceed with the second frying. Combine the sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, salt, and water in a 2 quart saucepan. Bring to a boil and add the vinegar. When the liquid comes back to a boil, stir in the cornstarch solution. Cook until the sauce thickens. Add the parboiled vegetables and the pineapple to the sauce, then add 1 tablespoon of hot oil from the deep-fry pan to give the sauce a shine.
While preparing the sauce, reheat the deep-fry oil to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for a second frying. Add all the pork to the oil and fry until the pieces are heated and crisped. (Frozen or refrigerated pork should be brought to room temperature before being cooked). Remove with a wire skimmer and drain on paper towels. (If not ready to serve the dish immediately, you can keep the sauce warm on the stove and the pork warm in a 325 degrees Fahrenheit oven for 10 minutes, no longer. Put together just before serving.)
Put the pork in a deep plate and pour the sweet and sour sauce over. Serve immediately.

Author’s Cooking Tips
*For best results use lean pork that is free of gristle.
**The batter must be prepared exactly as described and the pork fried twice at a temperature no less than 375 degrees F. to ensure crispiness.
***The same ingredients and technique can be used with chicken, shrimp, or beef.  Cooking times need to be adjusted accordingly.